GERMAN BASS CARL BRAUN (1886-1960) CDR

 

CARL BRAUN (MEISENHEIM, HESSE-NASSAU, 2 JUNE, 1886 – HAMBURG, 24 APRIL, 1960)

 

 

 

 

He studied under Hermann Gausche in Kreuznach and, in 1904, joined the Berlin Court Opera as a pupil, where his first role was the Hermit in Der Freischütz. There he received further training from Eugen Robert Weiß. He was engaged at the Wiesbaden Court Theater from 1906 to 1911, at the Vienna Court Opera from 1911 to 1912, and at the Berlin Municipal Opera from 1912 to 1915.

During his engagement in Wiesbaden, he made several guest appearances at the Frankfurt Opera, including as Jochanaan in Salome and as Orestes in Elektra (1910) by Richard Strauss. In 1908, he also appeared at the Vienna Court Opera. In 1910, he was a guest with the Wagner Society in Amsterdam, performing as Fafner and as King Henry in Lohengrin.

He became particularly well known as a Wagner interpreter and appeared at the Bayreuth Festival from 1909 to 1931. Over this long period, he sang the following roles in Bayreuth:

Fafner (1906, 1908–09, 1925, and 1930)

Fasolt (1911–12, 1925, 1927–28)

Wotan (1924)

Hunding (1925, 1927–28)

Hagen (1911–12, 1925, 1927–28) in The Ring of the Nibelung

Gurnemanz (1909, 1911–12, 1924–25, 1930)

Titurel (1908) in Parsifal

Pogner in Die Meistersinger (1911)

From 1912 to 1917, he was a member of the New York Metropolitan Opera, where his debut role was King Marke in Tristan und Isolde. There, in addition to his Wagner roles (Wotan, Pogner, King Henry), he also appeared as Sarastro in The Magic Flute, Marcel in Meyerbeer’s The Huguenots, and Thoas in the premiere of Gluck’s Iphigénie en Tauride (1911). In total, he performed 15 roles at the Met.

When the United States entered the First World War, he was forced to give up his engagement and was interned. He was not able to return to Germany until 1919.

From 1920 to 1927, he was engaged at the Berlin State Opera. In 1927, he sang Hagen at the Sopot Festival; in 1930, the Hermit in Der Freischütz; in 1931, Hunding and Hagen; in 1933, Rocco in Fidelio and the Landgrave in Tannhäuser.

Further guest appearances included the Vienna Volksoper (1921), the Frankfurt Opera House, the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels (in the Ring cycles of 1912, 1914, and 1934–35), the Basel City Theatre (1924), and the Rio de Janeiro Opera (in Wagner repertoire, 1922 and 1923). In 1922 and 1923, he enjoyed significant success on tours in South America, and again in North America from 1929 to 1931 with the German Opera, founded by Johanna Gadski. There he was heard as King Marke in Tristan and as Wotan. In 1922, he sang Fasolt, Hunding, and Hagen in the premiere of the complete Ring cycle at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires.

In 1933, he was engaged as a singer and director at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. His stage repertoire also included Stadinger in Lortzing’s Der Waffenschmied, Plumkett in Flotow’s Martha, Daland in The Flying Dutchman, Klingsor in Parsifal, and the Minister in Fidelio. He subsequently added Tschelio in Prokofiev’s The Love for Three Oranges, Gaveston in Boieldieu’s La Dame blanche, Ashby in Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West, the Cardinal in Halévy’s La Juive, and Madruscht in Hans Pfitzner’s Palestrina.

From 1935 to 1936, he worked as a director at the Berlin Volksoper and the Danzig City Theater. From 1937, he was active as a concert agent in Oberhausen, and from 1949 in Hamburg. His voice was preserved on Odeon, Vox, and Columbia records, all produced using acoustic recording technology.

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

Fliegende Holländer (Wagner) Mögst du, mein Kind 03364 1227A Vox, Berlin 1923-06

Freischütz (Weber) Du weisst, dass meine Frist schier abgelaufen ist (w. Vogelstrom, Wichgraf & chorus) XX76258 xxB5621 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Freischütz (Weber) Ha! Furchtbar gähnt der düst're Abgrund (w. Vogelstrom, Wichgraf & chorus) XX76259 xxB5622 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Freischütz (Weber) Hier erst das Blei (w. Vogelstrom, Wichgraf & chorus) XX76260 xxB5623-2 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Freischütz (Weber) Milch des Mondes fiel auf's Kraut (w. Vogelstrom, Wichgraf & chorus) XX76257 xxB5620 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Freischütz (Weber) O, diese Sonne (w. Vogelstrom, Wichgraf & chorus) XX76272 xxB5618 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Freischütz (Weber) Weh' mir! Mich verliess das Glück (w. Vogelstrom, Wichgraf & chorus) XX76273 xxB5619 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Juive (Halévy) Wenn ew'ger Hass XX76198 xxB5532 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

Lohengrin (Wagner) Mein Herr und Gott 03364 1228A Vox, Berlin 1923-06

Lustigen Weiber von Windsor (Nicolai) Als Büblein klein X98017 xB5908 Odeon, Berlin 1913-1112

Martha (Flotow) Lasst mich euch fragen (Porterlied) X98018 xB5909 Odeon, Berlin 1913-1112

Rheingold (Wagner) Abendlich strahlt der Sonne Auge XX76542 xxB6147 Odeon, Berlin 1914

Röslein rot (trad) (w. Sembach, Bloch & Goritz) E3515 43950 Columbia, New York 1916-05

Waffenschmied (Lortzing) Auch ich war ein Jüngling Rxx76399 xxB5910 Odeon, Berlin 1913-1112

Walküre (Wagner) Nicht straf' ich dich erst XX76543 xxB6150-2 Odeon, Berlin 1914

Zar und Zimmermann (Lortzing) O, ich bin klug und weise Rxx76401 xxB5912 Odeon, Berlin 1913-1112

Zauberflöte (Mozart) In diesen heil'gen Hallen XX76197 xxB5530 Odeon, Berlin 1912 (Spring)

GERMAN BASS CARL BRAUN (1886-1960) CDR

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